Networking within my small business (All are Win 10 Pro & 11 Pro) has become completely dysfunctional, WHY? No username/no password can get past the idiot credential nazi.

Question

For many years, within the confines of my facility, I have used a Windows 10 Pro 64 as a File Server and all 12 PCs Authenticated one time each when first added to the network and were able to load files up and pull them down flawlessly. It is peer to peer, mostly ethernet, a couple tie in by wi-fi, all 12 were Windows 10 Pro 64. We named the network simply something like "ABC" instead of the default "Workgroup", entered that into each new PC before doing the one time authentication. In Windows Explorer; Network would show each of the PCs turned on attached to the network. If there were no shared folders set up, no-one could 'see' into any of the file structures. For the file server we named it something like "FileServer" and set up a shared folder system with dozens of drill down pathways for storing all the data generated, pulling them up and making reports, etc. I'm not doing complicated things here. No VPNs, Nothing outside my hard firewall.

On a few rare occasions a new PC would fail to authenticate. For that PC, typically, once an outcast, always an outcast. it can see and use the internet, see each of the PCs on the internal ethernet network, but consistently be rejected by the Win 10 Pro File Server. I had tried dozens of settings adjustments from youtube, friends, experts, which never worked. In a couple cases, I had to resort to replacing the hard drive, reloaded windows 10 Pro 64, all the software, and the silly thing authenticated.

About 9 months ago, I upgraded my laptop from Windows 10 Pro 64 to 11 Pro 64 and no problem... for about 6 months. Then on some occasions it would not authenticate. I was guided to use a different username or email/ different password or pin and mysteriously, sometime it would work, other times not.

I bought two more Windows 11 Pro 64 machines and all hell broke loose. None of the three Windows 11 machines can reach the file server. Most of the Windows 10 Pro PCs can still see, upload, download files from the file server, but some key ones can not. They can see each PC on the network. I have tried hundreds of cures, wasted hundreds of hours, read all kinds of things. Tried in vain to get help from Dell, Comcast, and especially Microsoft. It seems if you buy Windows 11 or buy a machine with Windows 11 and hope to use it in a small business network, Microsoft simply can't be bothered with any form of support. I have wasted over 20 hours just trying to get some kind of help from Microsoft and the system is just designed to not help in any way. If ever there was a company that needed a serious competitor, it's Microsoft. Linux requires even more knowledge, that even fewer people have. How can Microsoft promote 'ease of use' or 'customer support' with a straight face? I have concluded this nightmare must be my punishment for refusing to store my highly sensitive date on OneDrive. This kind of heavy handed, below the belt, unfair trade practice, seems to have become microsoft's forte, MO.

Somebody, please! Help me.

The problem is to the point of driving me out of business. Instead of focusing on my customers problems, I have been consumed by the inability of moving files from PC to PC without running up and down the hallways with thumb drives. It's an outrage.

Answer 1

If you are only using it as a file server why would you not use a NAS? Or for safe cloud storage why would you not log them all into the same onedrive?